Inmates from Puente Grande prison escape in maintenance truck

The
escape was detected after roll call between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Thursday,
December 29. The inmates were missing from room 5 in cell 37.

The
escapees, convicted of serious crimes such as robbery, kidnapping and murder,
had to pass through at least five security levels. As a result, it is deemed virtually
impossible to escape from the prison without assistance. Mexican media are reporting
that custodians would have been paid about 150,000 pesos (US $10,750) to secure
their exit.

JoséGonzález, directorof the Center forSocialRehabilitationof PuenteGrande, said security cameras captured images of the van, and that
authorities have identified both the plates and the driver. The
van was supposedly delivering paint and mirrors to the prison as part of a remodelling
job.

At
a press conference following the escape, González claimed that such incidents
are caused by flaws in the prison system such as overcrowding and inadequate
budgets to improve security and control systems. He said that extensive work is
done to vet prison staff.

However,
it seems clear that the security problem at Puente Grande is not a matter of
poor technology, but, as in other escapes, more a function of human corruption.
González emphasized that all areas of the prison were now under review to ensure
that they were secure.

At
present, nine guards are under investigation, as are three civilian women who
have had links with the escapees. If found guilty, the suspects will face both criminal
charges and administrative sanctions.

Puente
Grande has been in the news in the past. The American Glen Stewart Godwin,
a convicted killer, escaped from Folsom Prison, California, in the summer of
1987. Godwin, using the alias Michael Stewart Carrera, was then arrested on
November 4, 1987, in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for drug trafficking.

Godwin
was convicted and sentenced to seven years at Puente Grande. In prison, Godwin
allegedly murdered a fellow inmate. And five months later, on September 26,
1991, the FBI says Godwin escaped again.

On
December 7, 1996, Glen Godwin was named to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
list. To this day, The FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for
information leading to Godwin's capture.

But
the most famous escapee of all is Joaquin "El Chapo" (Shorty) Guzman
Loera, the head of the Sinaloa Cartel and the most wanted man in the Americas.
Guzman escaped from Puente Grande in 2001, by bribing guards to smuggle him
outside via a laundry truck. A federal investigation later led to the arrest of
71 prison officials.

Puente
Grande, or “Big Bridge” has since been jokingly referred to as the “Puerta
Grande" (Big Door) prison. According to Time
Magazine, Guzman once bragged that he spends $5 million a month on bribes
to law enforcement officers.